The Denver Broncos – and by extension rookie Bo Nix – have taken criticism for their lack of production to start the season. Nix & Co. have four touchdown drives on the season, and the QB has 1 touchdown pass.
Their best opportunity to find a solution may not come until the 2025 draft.
“The Denver Broncos need a long-term wide receiver pairing with quarterback Bo Nix,” Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski wrote on October 4.
“Missouri’s Luther Burden III came on strong during the Tigers’ last two contests. The wide receiver caught 12 passes for 193 yards and three touchdowns during that stretch. What makes Burden such a perfect fit in Denver is his inside-outside flexibility paired with a special ability to create after the catch.”
The 5-foot-11, 208-pound Burden has 26 receptions for 339 yards and 4 touchdowns so far in 2024. He had seven receptions for 82 yards in the Tigers’ loss to Texas A&M on October 5.
He also had a 75-yard TD called back due to a penalty.
“Once upon a time, Payton’s scheme leaned heavily on Marques Colston working from the slot,” Sobleski wrote. “Burden doesn’t have the same size as Colston, he presents a strong lower body to work through traffic and break tackles to produce similar results.”
Burden is much smaller than the 6-foot-4 Colston. But his playing strength makes it an apt comparison and also likens Burden to a more contemporary example.
Potential Broncos Draft Target Luther Burden Compared to Bengals’ Ja’Marr Chase
The Athletic’s Dane Brugler projected Burden to “be in the mix for WR1” in his summer scouting guide. Brugler compared Burden to Cincinnati Bengals star Ja’Marr Chase, who is listed at 6-foot on the Bengals website.
“Watching Burden this summer brought on flashbacks of Ja’Marr Chase at LSU. With his burst and foot speed, Burden can effortlessly climb over the top of coverage or destroy pursuit angles as a catch-and-run weapon. His athleticism is one half of what makes him so dangerous; the other half is his physicality as a finisher and ball winner (just like Chase),” Brugler wrote in July.
“Working primarily out of the slot last season, Burden saw a ton of soft coverage with plenty of space to operate. Considering his twitchy athleticism and play strength, I have no doubt he can beat press coverage on the outside, but that is more of a projection right now.
According to Brugler, 15 of Burden’s 86 catches in 2023 came outside the numbers.
That trend has continued into 2024. Burden has lined up in the slot for 187 snaps compared to 19 snaps out wide through Week 6 of the season, per Pro Football Focus.
Burden has been outshined by Arizona wideout Tetairoa McMillan and Colorado’s two-way star Travis Hunter, who is gaining traction for the Heisman Trophy and No. 1 overall pick consideration.
The Broncos’ young receivers’ lack of contributions is the underlying issue to the problem Sobleski’s projection addresses with Burden.
Practice squad wideout Lil’Jordan Humphrey is the Broncos’ third-leading receiver behind Courtland Sutton and Josh Reynolds. Denver has gotten little from their trio of prospects at the position.
Rookie fourth-round draft Troy Franklin has four receptions for 9 yards on 10 targets.
He was Nix’s college teammate. But Franklin has received an 18.5% snap share through four weeks of the season, per Pro Football Reference.
Fellow rookie draft pick Devaughn Vele, a seventh-round selection, has 39 yards on eight receptions in eight targets. But a rib injury sidelined him in Week 3 and then made a healthy scratch in Weeks 3 and 4.
Broncos head coach Sean Payton said Vele will be back on the field eventually.
However, Payton entered the season having touted second-year wideout and 2023 second-round pick Marvin Mims.
Mims was an All-Pro as a kick returner in 2023. Payton said at the NFL Annual Meeting he expected the player to assume Jerry Jeudy’s role. The Broncos traded Jeudy to the Cleveland Browns during the 2024 season.
